the
cylinder; a ring to bring the fish up for inspection, and a loose
concave rim to prevent splashing over, complete it. A drawing with
particulars was deposited with the Society of Arts, in London.

THE NATURAL ENEMIES OF FISH.

Fish have so many enemies that were it not for the millions of embryo
or spawn deposited by the female, the breed of Salmon and Trout (to say
nothing of other species) would long since have become extinct. Eels,
fish, birds, water rats, toads, frogs, and last but not least, the
water beetle,[8] prey upon the ova, spawn and young fry; floods also
sweep away and leave on banks, or rocks, a considerable quantity of
spawn, which of course comes to nothing. Escaping the above perils and
causalities, and arrived at maturity, they become the prey and food of
the otter and heron, king's fisher, gull, &c., who emulate man in their
destructive propensities. The larger fish also prey upon the smaller.
Luckily otters are not so numerous in any English river as they used to
be. Night lines, shackle, rake and flood nets, and other devices not at
all creditable to those who use them, and to which I shall not further
allude, make terrible havoc amongst fish, and mar and spoil the fair
and honest angler's sport, but in most rivers and brooks of Trouting
celebrity, such practices are greatly on the wane. Proprietors will not
sanction such wholesale destruction; and now almost universally adopts
measures for the detection and punishment of such depredators.

[8] The water beetle is chiefly instrumental in conveying the
spawn of various kinds of fish to waters, where such species
had previously been unknown.

LAWS RELATIVE TO ANGLING.

It would occupy too much space to be diffuse in reference to angling
laws; I shall therefore briefly observe that all persons discovered
robbing fish ponds during the night, and all persons found poisoning
fish are liable to transportation; all persons using nets, listers,
snares or other unlawful devices, are liable to the forfeiture of such
nets, &c., and also subject to a fine at the discretion of the
magistrates before whom such offenders may be brought; and also, that
any person angling in any brook or river without the permission of the
proprietor or proprietors of such river or brook, is liable to a
penalty as a trespasser, and also to the forfeiture of any fish he may
have caught.

OBSERVATIONS IN REFERENCE TO THE EFFECT OF TH